In the United States, the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy reigns supreme and sexual assault is a normal way of life for many women officers. The military does not adhere to rape laws, which makes reporting one’s sexual assault case particularly difficult. Moreover, the severe emotional beating most of the victims experience forces officers to bear the brunt.
Some of the major scandals, which recently surfaced, were the Tailhook scandal in 1991, assaults on trainees at Aberdeen, MD, 1996 and the 2003 US Air Force Academy sexual assault scandal.
So who is to blame for this entire disgusting scenario?
It seems as if military world is saturated with sexual predators. Truly, they are nothing but ‘uniformed rape factories.’
Consequences:
Often the victimized woman undergoes certain psychological problems like inability to sleep, extreme nervousness, anxiety, and the ability to be easily startled. Most of them also reach a stage were they are not able to develop sexual intimacy with their partners. Some women also become bulimic, compulsive eaters, and abusers of drugs and alcohol.
Cases:
Since the early 1990s, studies, scandals and news accounts have shown that women in uniform are plagued by sexual abuse. The disclosures led to a succession of investigations but only minor policy changes.
Suzanne Swift, an internationally known American military police officer is facing charges of remaining absent without leave and missing movement for not being present with her company when it left for Iraq in January of 2006.
However, she herself has decided not to rejoin her general routine as she has been sexually harassed and assaulted by her seniors. In addition, she is also suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Many a times, she had to pass through the ordeal framed by her male superiors. To make the situation more worse, she was asked to serve 30 days in prison and was stripped of all her rank.
Maricela Guzman, 29, still hasn’t told her family or her ex-husband, about the sexual molestation she experienced eight years ago while serving in the military.
Avila Smith serving in the U.S. Army suffered sexual assault while at a military hospital having surgery. Her husband, who was also a member of the Army, battered her.
Figuratively:
1. more than 2000 cases of sexual assaults have been reported
2. in about 400 and above cases the victim was a civilian and the alleged offender was a military personnel
3. over 500 reports of sexual assault in the central command area of responsibility have been reported
However, the sorry state of affairs is that, if a victimized woman officer plans to lodge a complaint against the officers, she would be on the verge of putting her career at stake. Moreover, her case would be presented before the military jury, what’ll again comprises of men only. Then she would only be entitled to humiliations and courts- martial, than a genuine justice. Very often, women officers are encouraged not to file complaint and so nothing is ever done.
Image: Getty images
